Canadiens standout to debut vs. Blues

Dvorak, 27, had been out of the lineup since March of the 2022-23 season after struggling a knee harm and requiring surgical procedure to restore it. His knee hadn’t absolutely recovered by the point the 2023-24 season began, so he wanted to remain out of the lineup for the primary month of the season.

Dvorak had performed 64 video games with the Canadiens earlier than the harm final season, with 10 objectives, 28 assists, and 38 factors on the yr. It was the bottom level complete of his profession with at the very least 60 video games performed, and is the bottom by way of point-per-game tempo since his rookie season in 2016-17.

Dvorak was a former second-round decide of the Arizona Coyotes within the 2014 NHL Draft, and spent 5 season with them earlier than he was dealt to the Canadiens for a primary and second-round decide in 2021, and is now coming into his third season with the Habs. He’s within the fifth yr of a six-year contract with a $4.45 million cap hit, one he signed as an extension with the Coyotes in 2018 with a yr left on his entry-level contract.

Primarily based on Each day Faceoff’s projected lineup for the Canadiens on Saturday, Dvorak seems to be slotting into a 3rd line function with Juraj Slafkovsky and Josh Anderson. This line was the most typical mixture Dvorak performed with final season, though the ice time the trio spent collectively nonetheless didn’t even make up 7 p.c of Dvorak’s complete ice time in 2022-23. The combo had a 5v5 anticipated aim share of 43.41% and have been outscored 5-2 in 73:55 of ice time final yr.

The Canadiens will hope that Dvorak’s addition will assist snap their two-game dropping streak towards the Blues on Saturday, with the sport beginning at 7 p.m. EST. They at the moment sit in fourth within the Atlantic Division and within the first wild-card spot with a 5-3-2 document.